By: ~Goku the Paladin~

Author’s Notes: Since some wonderful people have asked me to write a sequel to "Spirited Away By A Youkai", I have fulfilled their wishes, just like the Mr. Popo genie that I am (not). Anywho, I’ve decided to type up and submit each chapter gradually. It will be easier for us both, mesa thinks. Sometime in the future chapters, there should be a lemon, so that explains the "NC-17" warning. I know when you read this chapter at first, it seems that it is a Sesshoumaru/Kagome fic, but I assure you, it is not. Oh yeah, do not read this fic if you have not already read "Spirited Away By a Youkai", since you most likely will be confused if you don’t read that first. I guess that’s all for now. Feedback would be very nice. By the way, don’t expect this to be as good as "Spirited Away By A Youkai", since sequels aren’t usually as good as the first part, but there are exceptions, though. ^.~

I also didn’t really know what to call this fic, but I liked both "Whispers of the Past" and "Phantoms of the Past" as titles. The second one seemed more appropriate for this pic, so I chose it. Well, Ja-Ne for now. Arigato. ^^

Plot: Sequel to Inu-yasha version of the Japanese animated movie "Spirited Away".

Dedication: I dedicate this fic to my Amanda/Gimli/Inu-yasha, for you have been my source of comfort and love since I met you. You are my sister, you are my family. We never know how much we care about someone until we lose what we love. I believe that we are so numb to the love we feel for someone, that if we felt all the love, we would surely be overwhelmed and die from it, Amanda. Let us hope we have a long time together, despite the pain. Just remember, Aishiteru anata.

Warnings: NC-17, Yaoi, and Angst

Pairings: Inu-yasha/Sesshoumaru

Disclaimer(s): I do not own the wonderful and ingenious characters of the anime Inu-yasha and there is a thing called Freedom of Speech, so blah…

<...> Indicates thought

EX: <…I think Naraku’s ‘kukukukuku’ has gotten to Sesshoumaru’s head…>

~*~*~*~*~

Prologue

It was in this time that many would forget of what was and remember of what was not. Too painful and beautiful such said memories deemed to be, so painful that one would lock them all away, thus, becoming cold and stoic. Becoming that, one would replace love with hatred, to secure the scarred heart. One who feared to ever love again, as if that said one feared he would have his heart bruised yet again.

But perhaps this time, one would find that you can never kill love and that no matter what, that said love will unlock the heart. Human or demon, the hearts of both are capable of love. Love is unconquerable.

The tale of the love between a Youkai and a human is buried in the past and in many hearts, but for the present, the love of the Youkai and the Hanyou begins anew…

~*~*~*~*~

Chapter One: Revealed Truths

"Kagome! Don’t be stupid!" Inu-yasha shouted.

Rage festered inside of Kagome like a virus, but for once, she said nothing and stormed off into the forest, ignoring Inu-yasha completely. She walked faster. Then she began to run. Nearly tripping and falling, Kagome ran blindly with all her might as tears streamed from her eyes. She didn’t care where she went or what happened. She just needed to get away. She needed to get away from it all. But most of all, she needed to get away from him.

Inu-yasha crossed his arms and closed his eyes, a scowl apparent on his handsome visage.

"You should go after her, Inu-yasha." Miroku advised. The monk was busy wrapping up Sango’s wounded left arm with a bandage. Just recently, they had gotten into a fierce battle with Naraku’s demons and nearly lost. Kagome had almost gotten herself kill, which caused Inu-yasha and her to fight again.

"Feh! Why should I? If she wants to leave, then she can! She will come back, anyway. We all know that."

"How can you be so cold, Inu-yasha?" Shippou wailed. "Kagome may get hurt out there all alone! If I was her, I wouldn’t come back, either!"

"She’ll come back." Inu-yasha said confidently.

"I wouldn’t be so sure about that, Inu-yasha." Miroku commented as he finished wrapping up Sango’s arm. Inu-yasha snorted and jumped up into a tree. He closed his eyes and sighed. Truth was, he wasn’t so sure himself.

~*~*~*~*~

The winds were violent and cold as Death himself. The branches of the dangerously swaying trees clattered and groaned as the fierce wind beat at them mercilessly. It was still late afternoon, but it was getting dark fast. The sun’s last rays of lights were barely visible as a fog drifted in and covered the forest in a thick foggy blanket.

Kagome tripped once more and tumbled down a rocky hill. She groaned and sat up and hissed with pain. She winced when she looked down at her right ankle, suspecting that she had a sprained it. She looked like someone had beaten the life out of her. Different assortments of bruises covered her body in different places. Blood trickled down from her head, nose, and corner of her mouth. Her left wrist felt numb, but she was sure she would feel the pain later. She grabbed onto a tree and pulled herself up slowly, being careful not to lean onto her right ankle. Kagome grimaced and sighed. It was abnormally cold and worst of all; she was lost, yet she couldn’t walk because she was injured. It wasn’t that serious, she believed, but she knew that if she walked on her injured ankle, it would only cause further injury. Kagome examined herself once more, but didn’t find anything to be broken. She wasn’t sure about her head wound, either.

<…Why do I always have to run away like a little girl?…> Kagome thought to herself bitterly. With a deep sigh, she eased herself down to the ground and sat, hugging herself. "Because I am a little girl." She whispered out loud to herself.

Unfortunately, today was not her day.

Kagome jerked her head up when she heard a twig break and a foul stench reached her nostrils. Three humanoid snake-like youkai stood there, glaring at her menacingly and hungrily. Horrified, she reached for her bow and an arrow.

Before she could even nock the arrow, the demons all lunged at her; their jagged, curved teeth exposed and claws extended. The bow and arrow slipped from her hands. She closed her eyes, awaiting and accepting Death. Nothing happened. She smelled the foul stench of dead demons. She opened one eye and gasped when she saw the dog youkai standing there, his hands bloody. The three snake demons had been ripped apart. Their entrails and blood lay strewn and splattered everywhere. It was a miracle that some of the blood had not touched her. Pure shock paralyzed her and she found that she couldn’t move at all.

He wasn’t staring at her, his amber eyes misty and clouded over. His head was tilted to the side a bit, as if he had looked at her for the first time. He stood still; his eyes never left her. She felt like a deer caught in the headlights. She sucked in a breath and accepted her fate once more. She smiled weakly.

<…At least someone somewhat familiar will kill me…> Kagome thought to herself and closed her eyes, once more awaiting Death.

Many long minutes passed, but nothing happened. Kagome curiously opened one eye and saw Sesshoumaru still in the same position, like he was some sort of statue. She began to get agitated and she glared at him.

"Well? Are you going to kill me or what?" She spat bitterly.

He blinked slowly. Kagome begun to suspect that he was mentally retarded or something. She blinked once. She then realized that maybe he was probably trying to keep her in suspense and after that, he would kill her slowly and painfully. He always seemed so cold and cruel to her, but she couldn’t help but remember the last time they had met. Sesshoumaru had saved Inu-yasha from destroying them and his own self. He had been asked why and of course, he had answered them coldly, but she didn’t buy that at all. If he truly wanted Inu-yasha dead, he would have killed him the first chance he got.

He still did not answer, but he just stared at her. She could not tell what he was possibly feeling by his impassive visage and even worse, his eyes were clouded with some unspoken emotion. She didn’t dare think it was sorrow, yet to her, it seemed so, but she didn’t believe it.

"Well?" She demanded again, glaring at him. He seemed unmoved by her anger, but yet, he did not move. Her head begun to feel light and she felt nauseaistic. Her vision began to blur and she went into a cold sweat. Without any warning, she felt a sharp pain stab through her head and she groaned loudly, clutching her head. It had felt as if thousands of tiny daggers had stabbed into her skull. The pain was so sharp and intense; she began to cry unconsciously.

Sesshoumaru continued to watch her, no emotion crossing his beautiful face, but his eyes, his eyes were glazed with misery. He saw her pass out, and as quick as light itself, he lunged forward and caught her before she fell forward to the ground.

He knelt on the ground, holding her in his arms. This embrace felt so familiar, yet it was different to him. He stood up and held her carefully in his arms as he headed towards his mansion. It had been fortunate for her that she had unknowingly wandered into the Western lands that day or else she would have died.

~*~*~*~*~

Inu-yasha stood near the torn bodies of the youkai corpses. He could still smell Kagome and Sesshoumaru heavily in the air. He growled. With a burst of energy, he dashed through the forest of the western lands, following the scent of Sesshoumaru and Kagome. He need not have to, though, since he knew where his brother lived very well, since he had once lived there a long time ago. As he half flew in the air, the New Moon shone brightly, his rapidly moving body basking in the moonlight. Unknowingly, he turned human as he ran. Normally, he would have noticed it, but at the moment, he was too preoccupied to notice his transformation.

He was stunned that Sesshoumaru had not killed Kagome yet, but he wagered that his brother probably planned to use her against him. Despite that suspicion, this just didn’t seem like his older brother’s style at all. For Sesshoumaru would always fight his own battles without making anyone else do so for him. He was like Naraku in a way, but completely different. Naraku was a sadistic hanyou who used others to do his dirty work and it seemed more likely that Naraku would abduct one of his friends, instead of Sesshoumaru doing so.

Inu-yasha cursed himself for being so stupid. Of course, he would never regret that, but he felt it all the same. It wasn’t long before he felt out of breath and he stopped to catch his breath. He still did not realize that he was fully human now.

~*~*~*~*~

With Jaken’s (reluctant) assistance (and some from Rin as well), Sesshoumaru fixed and dressed up Kagome’s wounds. It turned out her head injury wasn’t very serious at all in the least. After the last bandage had been wrapped, he carried her into one of the guestrooms and laid her down gingerly in the bed that seemed fit for a queen. He tucked the silk and fur sheets, so she would stay warm. After that, he tucked Rin into her own bed, which was in her own room, of course. He told her a story that any child would like and when she fell fast asleep, he tucked her in and kissed her forehead. He blew out the candle and left Rin’s room.

He entered the guestroom and sat in a comfortable chair beside the bed. He watched over Kagome. Thoughts and suspicions overwhelmed him entirely. He didn’t know why he saved Kagome, but a voice in the back of his mind, plus his gut instincts had advised him to. This human’s scent was so familiar to him, but couldn’t place it. He didn’t dare place it. Unconsciously, he grasped a card he always kept near his heart, behind layers of silk clothing. He took the card out and stared at it. So consumed with it, he didn’t notice Kagome sit up and gaze at him curiously.

"What does it say?" Kagome asked softly, recognizing that it was a card.

Sesshoumaru flinched and quickly put it back where he kept it always. "Nothing."

"Sesshoumaru, why did you save me? Why did you help me?" Kagome asked, getting to the point.

A few minutes passed and still he did not answer her. After awhile, he closed his eyes and said, "I don’t know."

"I ran away. I was tired of always being treated like a tool and I was tired of it all. I needed to get away from Inu-yasha. It’s strange, really. I long to be near him when I am away from him, but when I am near him, I long to be away from him. I know you don’t want to hear about him, but I have to talk to somebody and it might as well be you." Kagome explained. She sighed and continued, "I had fallen in love with him once, but the love is gone. I don’t know why, but it seems like we are sister and brother. We act that way, at least. It’s okay. I only need his friendship. Nothing more, nothing less…"

Sesshoumaru’s chest tightened painfully at the sound of that name. He opened his eyes and looked at her. "You remind me of someone I knew a long time ago, once…" He trailed off, his eyes now distant. It had been a long time since he had thought about the human boy he had once loved.

Kagome cocked her head to the side like a curious puppy. "Really? Maybe that’s why you rescued me."

"Perhaps."

"Sesshoumaru? You have loved someone before?" Kagome asked gently, taking the risk of being killed. She knew she was being nosy, but she wanted to know more about Inu-yasha’s brother, since he was so damn mysterious.

To her surprise, he answered her. "Yes."

"Oh, wow…" Kagome murmured as she stared at him. "Sesshoumaru?"

Sesshoumaru’s eyes were closed. "Hai?"

"Who was this human boy, if you don’t mind…" Kagome trailed off.

"I do mind. He was just a human boy who came from your time." Sesshoumaru impassively said, yet his tone held a dangerous edge to it.

Kagome froze and stared at him, eyes wide. "What…was his name?"

"It does not matter." The youkai answered sharply.

"Sesshoumaru, please tell me! I might…know who he is, or was…" Kagome pleaded.

The dog demon’s eyes fluttered open and he gazed coolly at her. "Such a stubborn and brave human girl, you are." He flexed and retracted his claws, either to intimidate her or just out of mere boredom.

"Please? I need to know." Kagome implored once more.

Sesshoumaru sighed. "If you must know, the name that once belonged to him now belongs to the hanyou you ran away from."

"INU-YASHA?" Kagome’s eyes were as big as dinner plates.

"Hai, the one and only aggravating hanyou."

Kagome clutched the blankets to her chest. She remembered when she was just a little girl; her mother would show her pictures of her deceased relatives and tell stories about them. The most memorable picture was that of her great grandfather, who had been born to the same name as the dog hanyou himself. Inu-yasha.

She remembered the great shock she had when she found out that the hanyou had been born to the same name. Kagome also remembered that on the day of the New Moon, she had seen a human with long black hair, sitting on the ground, wearing Inu-yasha’s red kimono. He had looked just like the human Inu-yasha from the photograph. It was such a coincidence that both had the same name, yet they looked alike when the hanyou turned full human. It was odd and eerie.

Kagome tried to piece it together as she stared awkwardly at the dog youkai.

<…Should I tell him or not? Oh, what could be the harm in that?…> Kagome thought and inhaled deeply and exhaled. "Sesshoumaru, there’s something you should know."

"I am listening."

"My great-grandfather was called Inu-yasha. He was from my mother’s side and she would always tell me about him. Long ago, when he was a boy, something dramatic, but good must have happened to him. Before he had moved, he had been very suicidal…but after he moved, something changed. He looked at life differently and seemed happier, yet there was always a hint of sadness hanging around him, like a cloak. It was as if he had left behind something he had loved. My mother believes that he was sad because he had left his friends and home. I don’t believe that at all; I believe what my grandfather believes. Grandfather says that Inu-yasha had once loved someone who had changed his life forever and he had to leave that person. He probably knew it was for the best, but in the pictures, his eyes always looked so sad. Strange, that emotion I have always seen in your eyes was the same emotion that was always in my great-grandfather’s eyes. I denied it at first, though. Sesshoumaru?"

The demon’s stomach knotted up and his chest felt so tight and constricted. He felt so weak now, so very weak. He felt as if he were dying very slowly. He had felt this once before. He had felt it when Inu-yasha the human had to leave him. He had felt it for many years, until he had pushed away all his emotions and feelings away, which he masked his exterior with a cold, emotionless image.

His clawed hands covered his face and he was stooped over, his elbows resting against his legs. His silver hair covered his face like a silk curtain. Kagome sighed.

"Gomen, Sesshoumaru. Please forgive me, I didn’t mean to-"

"-No. Do not apologize. You answered the riddle for me." He interrupted, sitting up. His face was stoic as usual now. "It is very clear to me now."

"You loved my great-grandfather, didn’t you?" Kagome asked softly.

"Rest now." Sesshoumaru stood up and walked away. He only got half way across the room when a crash was heard and something clad in crimson broke down the door, a large sword in hand.

"Sesshoumaru! Unhand Kagome!" Inu-yasha demanded, glaring at his older brother.

Sesshoumaru stood frozen and stared with disbelief at the human-turned Inu-yasha. Unfortunately, the dog youkai did not know that Inu-yasha always turned fully human on the New Moon. Before him, he saw his ‘past lover’, but did not even notice that he was wearing his brother’s clothes.

Long black hair cascaded down this human’s back and shoulders accompanied by a young, handsome face with violet eyes that blazed with fire.

"Inu-yasha," He murmured, many mixed emotions evident in his golden eyes. "You came back to me…"

"What are you talking about, baka?" Inu-yasha demanded once more, stumped by the expression on his elder brother’s face. <…I think Naraku’s ‘kukukukuku’ has gotten to Sesshoumaru’s head…> Inu-yasha thought.

All Kagome could do was watch apprehensively and eagerly. She didn’t dare make a sound. As a matter of fact, Inu-yasha didn’t even know she was there in the first place.

It seemed to the human-transformed hanyou that his brother had only crossed the room towards him in two graceful strides when two arms pulled him close. Inu-yasha’s sword clattered to the ground, but both of the brothers ignored it. Inu-yasha shivered at his brother’s touch, but could not move. Sesshoumaru’s face quickly closed into Inu-yasha’s, stealing a kiss from him. Inu-yasha protested, pushing at his brother’s chest, but his brother was stronger. He continued to struggle as the chaste kiss intensified into something more passionate, something more affectionate. Inu-yasha clutched helplessly at his brother’s shoulders. He just gave in for a moment, since the kiss actually felt kind of nice and for once, he felt that his older brother really loved him for the first time in his own miserable life.

To Be Continued…